Liverpool FC have flown a strong squad to Russia ahead of Thursday night's Europa League fixture against Rubin Kazan.

The Reds have won their last two games under Jürgen Klopp and though they face Crystal Palace in an important Premier League fixture on Sunday, he has included a host of star names in his travelling party to the Republic of Tatarstan.

The Merseyside outfit sit second in Group B, four points off of front-runners FC Sion, knowing that a win against Rubin would give them a huge boost to their hopes of reaching the knockout rounds.

And they will be significantly helped by the presence of several first-team regulars, with Philippe Coutinho and Christian Benteke amongst the squad that has gone to Kazan.

Elsewhere, vice-captain James Milner and fellow England internationals Adam Lallana and Nathaniel Clyne have travelled - as the Reds look for their first victory in Europe in the current campaign.

Reds to field strong team in Russia as they look to qualify for knockout stages 

In fact, Klopp hasn't left any senior figures behind for the gruelling 5,000-mile round trip, which sees Liverpool take on a team which held them to a 1-1 draw in Klopp's second game in charge last month.

They flew out on Wednesday morning ahead of Thursday night's fixture at the Kazan Arena, with no return scheduled until the very early hours of Friday morning.

It represents Klopp's approach to the competition, with the German treating European competitions significantly more seriously than their previous boss Brendan Rodgers.

Amongst the group are also Academy prospects Cameron Brannagan, Pedro Chirivella and Ryan Fulton - though Conor Randall, who made his debut in the win over Bournemouth recently, has not been included.

Plenty of changes are expected from Liverpool with Divock Origi, Joe Allen and Dejan Lovren being considered for re-calls to the side with Klopp unlikely to name the same side which overcame Chelsea at the weekend. 

Their opponents will be without their captain, Oleg Kuzmin, who was sent off in the first meeting between the two sides at Anfield a fortnight ago.

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About the author
Charlie Malam
Digital Sports Writer at the Daily Express. First-class Staffordshire University Sports Journalism graduate. Formerly VAVEL UK's Liverpool FC editor and Deputy Editor-in-Chief. Contributor since June 2014.